I’m sick of using google maps, they started putting gigantic ads for stores on the map and I’m tired of them tracking me. So I ask you Lemmy, what should I switch to?!
EDIT: Was not expecting so many replies, thank you Lemmy! I am checking out Open Street Maps currently thanks for the recommendations!
Do you know which of these has the most updated real-time traffic data, like for accidents and road closures? I depend heavily on maps not just for navigation but to also get the fastest routes to my destination. Obviously google maps is great with that because of the sheer amount of crowsourced data it collects, but it’s also effective with rerouting quickly for unpredictable events.
I don’t think any open-source products have anything close to what Google Maps offers.
Microsoft has Here which also does a bit of vehicle tracking to get traffic data. I think TomTom may still be in business, but that’s quite expensive.
Some governments have their own accident/road disturbance databases available for companies or the public, but you’ll have to be lucky to find ones that support your local area if your government even provides such a service.
Magic Earth is closed source but it claims it respects the users privacy, it uses open street maps and it has decent traffic data for navigation for some countries. It also has the advantage that you can configure it to stick to the original route if you prefer. This is very important for me because sometimes I want to take a scenic route, or just routes I prefer but that are not necessarily the fastest.
Thanks! This looks promising. Unfortunately it doesn’t even have my address yet (new neighborhood). I’ll park it in the meantime but will definitely keep it on my phone and will try it on familiar routes (in case something goes wrong).
Given it uses OpenStreepMap (OSM), you can create an account on osm.org and add the address (and other information) yourself, if you want